


Popsicle sunrise

by wrters



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Complete, Cute, Dreams and Nightmares, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Friendship, Insecurities, Like, M/M, Not stupid, Romance, Three Days in the Infirmary (Percy Jackson), Understanding, VERY DENSE, but very dense nonetheless, nico is dense, solangelo
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-23
Updated: 2021-01-25
Packaged: 2021-03-15 06:47:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,631
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28934244
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wrters/pseuds/wrters
Summary: During the three mandatory days that Nico had to spend in the infirmary, the two grew closer. Nico was starting to grow more and more comfortable around Will, and for once? He didn't mind.I wrote this story right after reading Blood of Olympus, so most of the details should be canon!
Relationships: Nico di Angelo & Will Solace, Nico di Angelo/Will Solace, Solangelo - Relationship
Comments: 7
Kudos: 34





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! I haven't written in ages, but I'm starting to get back into it. I hope you enjoy! The story is in Nico's POV. This first chapter is around 1700 words.

Light surrounded Nico when he woke up. Where was he? He didn’t recognize any of his surroundings. A wave of panic cursed through his body. His vision was still a bit blurry, so he wiped his eyes in order to hopefully see clearer. When he noticed that he wasn’t in his cabin, he reached for his sword. Suddenly, a voice jumped up behind him.

“Whoa! What are you doing?” 

He tried to unsheathe his sword when he noticed that there wasn’t anything there. He looked up, and it hit him.  
He was in the infirmary, and the mysterious voice belonged to none other than Will Solace. Nico immediately calmed down and plopped back into bed, laying down comfortably but without closing his eyes.

“Were you scared of me?”  
“What! No!” He paused. “I just didn’t know where I was, that’s all.”  
“This is the infirmary. And don’t worry – he paused – you’re safe here.” 

The words had a surprising effect on Nico. He felt calmer, somehow.  
Will stood up and got further away from his cot. Nico’s eyes followed him carefully. He walked towards a window and removed the curtains, letting the morning sunshine flow in through the window. He brought back a glass of water and some gatorade.

“You slept for hours. Are you hungry?” He said, pouring some of the blue liquid in a glass and handing it to Nico. He took a small sip.

“Gatorade for breakfast? What kind of doctor are you, Solace?”  
“Hey, I needed you to have some energy, somehow. You didn’t seem like you got a lot of rest, even after sleeping for so long.” 

Will pulled out a chair and sat cross-legged on it, in front of Nico’s cot. The rest of the infirmary was weirdly empty. What time was it?  
Will seemed to notice Nico’s anxious looking-around, and gave him a sideways smile.

“It’s 5 AM. Most patients only come in in the late morning, after they’ve had the time to get hurt.” He chuckled. “And even then, they usually leave before dinner. Unless we have an eventful capture the flag game, most people don’t stay overnight.”

Nico could imagine why. The infirmary wasn’t an uncomfortable place, but it was so… plain. White bedsheets, matching pillows, and rows of beds separated by a translucent curtain. The most interesting thing in the room were the windows- or in his case, the doctor. 

Noticing that Will had gotten off his chair and was rummaging through some papers on the desk, he took that time to study him. His outfit was the same as the day before – Nico wondered if he’d even had the time change – He wore a green surgeon’s shirt, ripped jeans that were a bit too big on him, and pink flip flops. He wasn’t going to question his fashion sense. After all, this was one of his better outfits. He couldn’t help but remember what he’d worn during the battle against Gaea. As bad as his camouflage was (he’d worn all black but without covering his bright yellow hair), he pulled it off really well. A bit too well for his taste. 

He looked down at his own body. He was still wearing the same outfit he’d been wearing since they’d stopped at San Juan. His tropical ISLA DEL ENCANTORICO shirt was ripped, muddy and had some blood spatters on it. It have the palm trees and the parrots a gloomier look than what was probably intended. Will’s voice interrupted his thoughts.

“By the way, how old are you?”. He was looking at him from the desk, holding up a few pieces of paper. His piercing blue eyes were looking directly into his.  
“Eighty-seven.”  
Will laughed. “Come on, Death Boy. I think you look a bit too good for an eighty-seven year old”. 

Nico looked at him, trying to hide his surprise. Will thought he looked good? He’d think about this later. Right now, he needed to answer his question.

“I was born on January 28th, 1932.”

He didn’t have any memories from his childhood before the military academy he had been sent to with his sister – his heart ached at the memory of his sister – but he knew the gist of it. Hades had told him during one of their father-son talks, which were more of an interrogation in the most respectful way possible.

Will just looked surprised. Nico figured he’d need to elaborate. He didn’t like talking about his past.

“My body’s fifteen.”

That should do it. It was all Will needed to know, even though Nico somehow didn’t mind telling him a bit more.  
Will, looking equally as surprised as he did before, took a pen and wrote it down. He hesitated before saying anything else.

“Why?”

After seeing Nico’s lack of a response, he added “You don’t need to tell me.”  
Nico ignored that last part.

“I spent seventy years in the Lotus Hotel and Casino. It’s a place where time doesn’t go by, basically. So while I had the impression that I’d only been there for a few months, it had been seventy years. I went in 1941 and got out in 2012.”

Will looked puzzled. He didn’t say anything, which Nico took as an invitation to talk more about it. He didn’t mind. 

“My father put me in there, hoping I’d be one of the kids from the prophecy. He also deemed that the second World War wasn’t the best place for a child of Hades to grow up in.”

Will nodded. He seemed to understand a bit better, but there was an underlying tone of surprise splattered around his face. After a pause that seemed to last an eternity, he spoke up.

“I don’t know if I can ask any of this, so don’t feel like you need to reply, but… what was it like?”

Nico was indecisive. Did he really want to tell Will all of this? He didn’t want the son of Apollo to feel pity for him. The way Will felt about him was already confusing enough. He’d called him a Friendly face. A friend. He’d even expressed that he would have appreciated his presence in the infirmary over the past few days. Nico had conveniently come in during the least busy day after the battle. If Will had managed to heal that amount of people in such a short amount of time… It was impressive. He already knew he was good – the best combat medic the camp had to offer – but he didn’t realise how good. He had a gift for healing. His thoughts went back to what he’d told him before coming in. He wanted to see him. He though of him as a friend. A friendly face. Dense, too. The hundred skeletal butterflies came back, invading his stomach with a feeling he didn’t recall feeling often. What did he mean by dense?

Nico noticed he’d gotten lost in his own thoughts when he heard the rummaging of a few papers and the scribble of a pen. He turned his head to look at Will. He looked lost in thought, filling out paper after paper. They’re infirmary forms, Nico noted. That’s why he asked how old he was.  
He decided to break the silence.

“What are you doing?”  
Will looked up. “Paperwork. Probably the worst part of the job. I hate it.” He looked back down at his desk. “Plus, I’m dyslexic. This is a nightmare”.

“I could summon a ghost to do it for you”.

Nico hadn’t thought very hard before blurting that out. He wanted to help, that was all. Will had a stern look on his face.

“I told you,” he said. “No more underworld magic. Doctor’s orders.” He didn’t look pleased.  
“I- sorry. I didn’t realise”.

Why did he care about what Will Solace thought of him? Even better, why should he care about what he thought of him? No matter how much he tried to convince himself that Will didn’t think highly of him, and that he must be repulsed of him after what happened with Octavian, he couldn’t help but remember the conversation they’d had. ‘You can’t help out a friend?’ ‘I hope you got over that nonsense about leaving Camp Half-Blood’. Did Will actually want him to stay? He probably just wanted him to stay so he didn’t get hurt. So he didn’t need to come back to the infirmary to be healed. So he didn’t need to see him again.

The knot in his stomach dissolved instantly after hearing Will sigh “It’s fine.” He went back to his paperwork, and Nico decided that it was best not to say anything. He was there to rest, right? So that’s what he was going to do. No more overthinking. Just two more days, and he could be out of Will’s way. 

He readjusted his pillow below his head. It wasn’t uncomfortable, it was even better than the pillows in his cabin. Skull-shaped pillows weren’t the best thing one could sleep on. He really needed to redecorate. Putting a hand under his pillow and the other one around himself under the thin covers, he drifted off to sleep.

He only had one dream, and it was surprisingly not a nightmare.

He was walking around the strawberry fields on a breezy summer afternoon. The apollo kids were practicing on the shooting range, and a few other campers were sparring in the arena. It was a pleasant moment. He breathed in. The smell of the strawberries, the lake, the tall grass surrounding him. He liked it. He laid down on the ground, looking up at the sky. There were a few clouds, but to Nico, they completed the scenery. He felt safe, at home. It was the best he’d felt in a long time. 

It didn’t feel like a demigod dream. It was just… a dream. No visions, no predictions. Only a dream. 

Shortly after he realised that, the dream took a turn. He was now standing on the top of the lava tower. His sword was at the bottom, it had probably fallen off while he was climbing. That’s when he noticed Will Solace, on the left side on the tower, barely hanging on. The lava was advancing dangerously close to where he was, and if he were to let go, the fall would have been either very painful or deadly. Nico watched, paralysed.

He was helpless. 

There was nothing he could do.


	2. Chapter 2

He woke up in a cold sweat. Next to him, someone was holding a glass of water and brushing his hair off of his face. He put the glass down and whispered to him.

“It’s okay, Nico. You’re okay. You’re safe here.”

Nico rested his head on Will’s arm, looking for comfort. The son of Apollo sat on the edge of the bed and put an arm around his shoulders. They stayed like that for a bit. After Nico was fully awake, he froze. He didn’t like being touched. What was going on? Will was… hugging him? Will stopped whispering, and was about to pull away from the sideways hug when Nico relaxed back into his arm. He didn’t mind.

His thoughts were still racing in his head, but this time, they were different. Why didn’t he mind? He had a strict no-touching policy. And yet… It wasn’t that bad. He remembered how serious Will looked when he’d called him to tell him he needed to stay in the infirmary. Nico wondered if he was still as angry. Probably not, given the position they were in.

Will’s arm shifted, pulling away from him. With a disappointed mumble, Nico looked up to the taller boy. A smile was written all across his face, almost glowing. He plopped back into his cot, and the shifted to be in a sitting position. Will was no longer smiling, and had a rather concerned look on his face.

“What happened?”  
“Nightmare.”  
“Was it bad?”  
“I think it was a regular nightmare. It didn’t seem like a vision.”

It couldn’t be a vision.

He turned so he could face Will. “Can I have some of that water?”  
Will handed it to him, not saying anything.

He drank it quickly, almost chugging it, and set it back down on the nightstand. He took a deep breath. What was he meant to say now? The realisation of what had happened hit him. He’d been cuddling with Will Solace? And he… enjoyed it? No. Not a chance. He looked down at his clothes, a tired expression on his face. Will was studying him, and he was very well aware of it. He was grateful that his shirt covered his arms. While it was ripped and some wounds were visible, most were just scars. He didn’t want anyone to see the claw marks and other marks, especially since some were still swollen. Portugal sucked. He pulled his sleeves down, trying to hide any visible part of him from Will’s studious gaze.

“Do you want new clothes? You can’t stay in that shirt. Your wounds could get infected”  
“It would… I guess it’d be nice”  
“Plus, – Will chuckled – the shirt doesn’t really seem like it’s your style.” He winked at him.  
Feeling the blush rise to his cheeks, he nodded. “Yeah. I’m a bit tired of twinning with Coach Hedge.”

Will laughed, and Nico could swear that it was one of the best laughs he’d ever heard. He was smiling before he knew it. Will stood up and went to a nearby closet. He pulled out two Camp Half-Blood shirts and a pair or black shorts. After quickly glancing at Nico, he turned around and pulled his own shirt off. He quickly slipped one of the CHB shirts on, but not before Nico had the time to take a good look at him. To his surprise, he had a few scars on his back, probably from a past battle or an especially vicious capture the flag game. 

He handed Nico his new change of clothes, pulled the curtain around him and left him alone so he could change. His arms didn’t look that bad after all. They were a bit swollen, but not much more. He pulled the curtain back.

“What do you think of me?”

Will definitely didn’t expect that.

“You’re my friend”.  
“Cecil and Lou Ellen are your friends. You just met me. Plus, you’re not making your friends spend three days in the infirmary”. That came off more defensive than he intended.  
“My friends didn’t shadow-travel all the way here while carrying two people and the Athena Parthenon.”

Nico stayed silent. He had a good point. Will kept talking.  
“But also, you ARE my friend. I don’t care how dense you are, to me, we’re friends. And friends care for each other. So I’m caring for you.”  
Nico couldn’t hide his surprise. “Thank you.”  
“No need to thank me.” Will smiled. “I’m finally getting to spend time with you. I almost felt like you were trying to avoid me earlier. Like I said, you have a friendly face. I don’t mind it when you visit.”  
“I thought you blamed me for what happened to Octavian”.  
“Octavian?” He looked surprised. “Of course not. He was trying to kill our friends and disrespecting my father in the process. It was his own fault.”

“Plus.” Will kept talking. “If someone’s stupid enough to get their robes caught on a catapult, there isn’t much one can do.”

Nico felt a wave of relief wash over him. No, it was more than that. The butterflies in his stomach wouldn’t dissolve. Did he have a crush on Will Solace?

The person that had just said that he cared for him as a friend?

Nico didn’t know what to say. Will was back at his desk, rummaging through some paperwork without actually looking at any of it. He stood up and walked up to the desk.

“You should stay in bed. It’s important that you rest. You almost faded.”  
“I feel fine now.”  
“Doesn’t mean you can leave.”  
“I wasn’t planning on that.”

Will looked up to him. The look on his face was one Nico didn’t recognize. He didn’t look unhappy.

“So… What do you do to pass the time around here?”

Will pulled out a deck of cards out of one of the table’s drawers. “Wanna play?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!  
> Any comments / ways to improve are appreciated  
> Have a nice day/night!  
> <3


	3. Chapter 3

They spent the rest of the evening playing every game they could think of. Will was especially good at go fish, while Nico had more of a strong suit when it came to poker or blackjack. He used to play with ghosts when he was bored, after he’d deemed himself “too old for Mythomagic”, but spending seventy years in a casino probably helped. 

He hadn’t had this much fun in what felt like ages. After his stomach rummaged a bit too loudly, Will ran off to the Big House to get some extra food from dinner. 

Surprisingly, no campers had come in during the day. People were probably spending time in their cabins resting. It was no wonder, a war against Gaea could be tiring for some people. The only campers he had come in contact with were Will’s siblings, Kayla and Austin and some younger ones whose names he didn’t remember, that came in just to check on Will and left quickly after. 

He couldn’t help but feel a hint of jealousy at Will’s supportive siblings, and couldn’t help but wonder what it’d have been like if his older sister was there with him. She could be a buzzkill sometimes, but he had looked up to her his whole life, and they’d gone through a lot together. Then of course there was Hazel, and he couldn’t be any more grateful to have her, but she didn’t make him miss Bianca any less.

Nico shook his head. He shouldn’t be thinking about this right now. He was meant to be having fun. They’d spent the last hour playing Liar, a game at which Will kept losing no matter how hard he tried. He had terrible pokerface. He stood up, his legs groggy from sitting on the floor for a bit too long. He made his way to the desk, where he noticed his file was stored, placed neatly on a pile of other camper’s paperwork. 

He liked Will’s handwriting. It was a bit messy, but in a cute, readable way. He read what he had written. It was all basic information. Name, age, reason for the stay, notes. That last part was different. In every other form, the notes section was empty. Nico wasn’t surprised, since Will hated paperwork so much, it made sense that he’d keep it short and concise. However, on his paper, the notes section wasn’t empty. In an even messier and awfully small, so small that Nico had to hold the paper up close to his face so he could read, were the words “see diary for further notes and impressions.”

Will had a diary?

And why would he need to write the notes separately?

In that moment, and before he managed to put the piece of paper down, Will came bursting in the room.  
“I brought dinner!” He cheered, a smile painted all over his face. 

Nico put the piece of paper down and went to join him, sitting down cross-legged on the ground next to him. Will had brought back a burger and fries. It wasn’t McDonald’s, but he appreciated the thought.

“What time is it?”  
“Around 11PM, why?”  
“Wait, really? I thought it was like, mid-afternoon.”  
“You took a really long nap, Death Boy.”  
“Hey, don’t call me that!” He nudged him playfully on the shoulder.  
“What do you want me to call you then? Neeks? Di Angelo? The Ghost King?”

Nico laughed. Will smiled at him. 

“So, di Angelo, what were you doing while I was gone?”  
“I investigated. You know, at first, I didn’t really like it here. I guess it’s not that bad.”  
“I’m glad you like it. It can get a bit boring sometimes, but-”  
“Is that why you wanted me to come see you in the past few days?”  
Will paused. “Well, yeah I guess. I wanted to see you. And also, you definitely needed rest. I saw you walk through a tree.”  
“I did that?”  
“You didn’t even notice? It’s way worse than I thought.”  
“At least I’m here now!” Nico said, cheerfully.  
“And I’m very glad that you are.”

They both finished their dinner, but the conversation didn’t seem like it was about to die down any second. Will checked his watch a couple of times, but he didn’t say anything.  
At what felt like three in the morning (though it was probably midnight), a wave of fatigue washed over Nico, and he almost collapsed and fell asleep right where he was. He stood up, somewhat stumbling, and went to sit on his bed.

“Hey Solace!”  
Will looked up at him from where he was sitting on the floor. He looked just as tired as Nico.  
“Where are you going to sleep?”  
“I was going to go back to my cabin.”  
“It’s past curfew.”

Will paused. He hadn’t taken that into consideration. He looked up at Nico.

“Mind if I sleep here then? I don’t want to get eaten by harpies”  
“It’s your infirmary, Solace. Do what you want. I’ll sleep right here”

Nico’s head fell on his pillow as soon as he finished his sentence. He was a really heavy sleeper, so when he woke up, it was almost noon. The infirmary wasn’t as calm as it was before. Will was nowhere to be seen, and the beds around him were occupied by both Ares and Apollo campers. Kayla was the one on infirmary duty, passing around bandages and giving her patients ambrosia.  
She walked up to Nico.

“Everything okay?”  
“Yeah, I’m fine. Do you have anything to eat?”

She handed him two cereal bars. 

“I have to go- will you be fine? You can go in the room in the corner if you want to be alone, the place is a bit hectic right now.”  
“I’ll do that. Thanks.”

Nico didn’t know if she said that because she genuinely wanted him to be comfortable of if she wanted him out of her patient’s sight. A child of Hades wasn’t usually appreciated in hospitals.

When he walked into the spare room, he figured that that where Will had spent his night. The bed was bigger, more comfortable, and most importantly, undone. The nightstand had the deck of cards from the night before alongside what looked like the watch Will had been wearing. He checked the time: 12:30PM. He was probably at lunch.

Nico made himself comfortable on the bed, eating the cereal bars and rummaging around the bedside drawers. The bottom one was odd, though. It was harder to open, and the bottom of the drawer was weird. Was it… a fake bottom? He lifted up a latch on the side, and the bottom of the drawer lifted itself up. Nico carefully lifted it up, wondering what was so secret that it needed to be hidden so well. 

Inside the drawer was a notebook, a bit bigger than the size of his hand, with a piece of lace wrapped around it in a very intricate knot. Nico would need to untie the lace in order to open the notebook and see what was inside.

Was this Will’s diary? In which the “notes” about the first day of his stay were written? It made sense for it to be there. After all, people were curious, and if you kept a secret diary in a cabin full of siblings, chances were the diary was no longer a secret. 

He studied the mechanisms of the lace, followed by the ones of the drawer, and put it back. Will would come back any second, and he didn’t want to break his trust. 

Well, overall, reading the diary in itself would be a violation of his trust. He only wanted to see the last few pages either way. He figured it’d be fine. After all, he desperately wanted- no, needed to know what Will though of him.  
He’d come to the conclusion that he liked the son of Apollo a bit beyond friendship when he was laying on him after his nightmare. A nightmare that was about him, specifically. 

Thinking about his feelings only brought back past memories. When he’d been forced to admit his crush on Percy in front of Jason, he thought his whole world was going to crumble. Thankfully, he’d gotten over Percy. Not so thankfully, he’d fallen for someone again.

He didn’t know what he was going to do. For all he knew, Will was single, but he didn’t feel like he knew much about anyone from camp. Not only that, but there was a high chance that he was straight. If he dressed like that and still considered whatever he wore an outfit, there was a high chance that he hadn’t spent a lot of time in the closet. 

Aside from that, it wasn’t like he’d get to ask him about it. Talking about his own feelings was bad enough, there was no need to talk about other people’s.

He laid down in the bed. Was there anything he could do? His mind was racing. There wasn’t much that could be done. Will was probably straight, he’d asked him to come to the infirmary as a friend, and that was probably all that he wanted out of their relationship. It was like Percy all over again. Except this time, it was even more painful. The heartache set in and Nico felt his tears start running down his face. Like Akhlys, the goddess of misery had said, he was perfect. 

The door creaked.

“Nico?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one was a bit angstier but I promise it'll get better from here. Anyway, how are y'all doing?  
> Thanks for reading!


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a quick detail, I know I said that the story was all in Nico's POV but at the very beginning I did include Will's for a tiny but just for the sake of storytelling :)

[Will’s POV]

Will rushed to his side. What was going on? When he’d left for lunch, he was sleeping. Kayla had told him that she’d relocated him to the spare room, but he didn’t expect to walk in and see him laying on the bed with tears streaming down his face. 

“Nico?” He asked. The smaller boy didn’t reply. He put his hands over his face, as if to wipe away his tears, and turned away from him. Will was confused to say the least. 

He walked closer to the bed and sat on the side. 

“What’s going on?”  
Nico pulled the bedsheets up his face. “I’m fine.”  
“No you’re not. Don’t lie to me.”

Will took a deep breath and put his hand on Nico’s. He held onto it until he felt his hands relax and pulled the blanket down from his face. He didn’t want to fully hold him because he knew that he didn’t like that, so he opted for his hand. That, and he also wanted to hold his hand. Nico sat up. They were both looking into each other’s eyes, and the tension in the room was dangerously easy to read.  
Was Nico like this because of him? Maybe he shouldn’t intrude.

“I can leave if you want me to.” He said, hoping to reassure him. He had no idea what to do. He was used to healing patients, he knew how to do that. What he didn’t know how to do was comfort people, especially people he, well, like liked.  
“Don’t.”

[Nico’s POV]

He had no idea why he’d said that. Will’s hand over his made his skin almost burn. Even after he’d shifted positions, neither of them pulled away. Did that mean anything? Or was he just an overthinker? Nico took a deep breath. What should he do now? He didn’t want to sleep, he wasn’t tired. He felt like Will needed an explanation. His sky blue eyes seemed to look directly into his soul, but his facial expression showed that he wasn’t very good at it.

“I was just… thinking.”  
“Is something bothering you?”  
How did he always ask the right questions?  
“Well… yeah. But I don’t think I’m ready to talk about it yet.” He tried to change the topic. “Do you need help with anything? The infirmary’s busy today, and you told me you wouldn’t mind if I was there to help you cut bandages”.

Will paused to think.

“Come with me. I’ll show you how.”

He followed Will back into the main room, where the beds were still mostly occupied by injured campers, but there were definitely less than when Nico woke up.

“So, for starters, since most of the patients here have either been shot by an arrow or stabbed, we’re gonna need a lot of bandages. Can you take care of that?”  
Nico nodded.  
“Okay, well to cut them, they should be around 20 inches long.” He handed Nico a long roll of plain bandages and a sharp pair of scissors. “Then, when you’re done, roll them up and tie them with a clip like this one.” He handed a small, stretchy clip. It looked like it could be used to tie bandages together, so Nico didn’t question it much. He’d definitely never seen them before, though. When he needed to tie a bandage, he just made a knot.

Will got a rolling chair out of the storage space and sat on it, pulling another one out for Nico. The desks came with a small tray that could be folded on the side. He sat down, pulled the tray out and got to work.

“Do you have a ruler?”  
“Why would you need one?”  
“To measure the bandages. I’m terrible at measuring lengths.”  
“I don’t think we have rulers that long. Just cut them a but shorter than arms length.” Will smiled at him, and Nico couldn’t figure out why.

He took one good look at his arm and got to work.

Every time he handed a bandage to Nico and their hands brushed together, Nico had a mini heart attack. When Will no longer needed bandages, he’d go up to the storage closet and get him extra ambrosia or to hand him some soda from the infirmary minifridge. 

After a while, Nico felt better. He appreciated the moments like this. He had the chance to talk to his friend and spend time with him, and if that was all that he could have out of their relationship, he would be happy. Most patients left before dinnertime. They weren’t fully healed, of course, but Will deemed them “okay to go” and they happily left to go to dinner. 

He was surprised when he told the last camper he could go, a son of Ares who had received two arrows on the leg and walked with a limp. Was Will trying to get rid of everyone so the infirmary was empty? Nico went back to his cot and threw himself on the mattress. 

“Tired, di Angelo?”  
“Not really. But I wouldn’t mind resting for a bit. You should go eat.”  
“I’m okay here. Unless you want me to go, of course.”  
“What? No!” That came out way more enthusiastically than he expected. “I- I mean stay. It’s nice having you here.”  
Will smirked.  
“As you wish.” Will looked at him as if he meant something behind what he had just said. Nico frowned. Reading the obvious look of confusion on his face, he added “You’ve never watched Princess Bride?”  
“Is it a movie?”

Nico didn’t have a lot of movie knowledge. He remembered going to the movies with his sister, when it was the holidays at the military school. Other than that, he hadn’t had the chance to go to the movies. 

Will looked at him with surprise. “It is. I don’t think I have it though- I’ll ask around and see if anyone does. You need to watch it, it’s really good.”  
Nico was surprised at his sudden enthusiasm. “I guess I will.”  
Will spoke up quickly “Want me to go get you something to eat?”  
“Can I go with you?”  
“I don’t think so, young man. You need to rest. Wait here and I’ll bring you something.”

He got up and bolted out the infirmary door before Nico could make the remark that technically he was older than him. As soon as Will was out the door, Nico’s thoughts went back to the diary he had found in the hidden desk drawer. What could be written in there that was so secret that he needed to hide it? No, Nico decided. It wasn’t his place. If Will wanted to tell him something, he would. Plus, the notes would probably be some medical details. He needed to find a way to find out what was inside without needing to sneak around. It wouldn’t be honest. Lies and deception had never gotten him far either way. They always caught up to him.

Suddenly, it came to him. He’d known about the existence of the diary because of the notes in his file, right? So if he could just find the file again and ask him about what was in his diary, it’d work out. He got up, ignoring the dizzy feeling that he got (it was probably the lack of food and the fact that he wasn’t fully recovered) and went up to the desk. Looking through his files, he found his own pretty quickly. While his eyes hoovered over the page and down to the notes section, he noticed that someone else had written on the page. The handwriting was different. It read: ‘Just admit you like him already!’  
It was probably Kayla. What did she mean by that? Was it like as a friend or like as… more? Nico’s thought process was interrupted by his favourite son of Apollo walked through the door. What was it with him, always stepping in at the worst possible moment?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! I've been dealing with a lot of school things lately, but writing makes me feel better, so here's another chapter :)  
> Have a nice day/night!  
> <3

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Please tell me if there's anything I should do better, I'm always looking forward to improving! Comments are appreciated <3
> 
> Have a nice day/night!


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